Would You Like a Side of Gills With That?
by yosakazure
Summary: A oneshot about our favorite spikey-haired protagonists in an AU where one of them happens to be a fish. When Yugi tries to do the right thing, he accidentally causes a merman to lose his memory in typical goldfish fashion...or maybe not so typical.


Yugi walked along the rocky beach near Domino City pier and enjoyed the salty air as it brushed over him like a soft breath. Spring was slowly turning to summer and he had escaped yet another random bully who couldn't take losing at the arcade. It's getting to the point that the young duelist didn't think he should play random challengers anymore. He ended up running to the most unstable and uncomfortable part of the beach. One could easily twist their ankle on the piles of rocks if they didn't step carefully.  
Nevertheless, Yugi thought it was kind of nice. The place was deserted and the breeze was welcome as he worked up quite a sweat. As he watched the tide rise along the shore, he noticed something odd wash up against the jagged rocks. Maybe he wasn't alone here after all!  
"Hey! Are you okay?" he shouted to what appeared to be a person clinging for dear life to the spiked shore. When the teen didn't see any indication of life, he ran quickly to the person's aid, grabbing them by the waist to carefully drag them out of the water while doing his best to make sure he didn't injure the person further. Once he caught his breath, he looked closely to see a man that resembled him very closely. The man had dark crimson eyes and tanned skin but other than that…spitting image. Oh and if you didn't count the tail, too.  
Wait…tail!? It was true! He was staring down at red scales that matched the man's eyes, but the fins shimmered gold in the setting sun. "Oh gods, I just yanked a merman from the ocean…how hard did that guy hit me!?" Yugi smacked his own face in disbelief but the image didn't disappear. Instead he noticed even more things like how the man was covered in injuries. He looked like he had seen the business end of a spear or two!  
"Are…you okay?" Yugi asked timidly. The man wasn't moving at all.

The man appeared to be out cold and bleeding heavily. He didn't know anything about fish injuries, but it was the man half of him that seemed the most injured. So quickly, he tore off his school jacket and his white button up shirt and began to tear it into strips. Cautiously, he wrapped the man's wounds tightly so that the bleeding would stop. Once he seemed out of danger, Yugi hurried to wash the blood off his hands in the ocean.

No sooner had he turned around, he heard the man stir behind him and he quickly rushed back to his side. "Are you okay? You scared me half to death," he smiled with relief.

The merman didn't seem all that pleased. In fact, he flailed like…well…like a fish out of water and tried to scoot away but the rocks hindered his movement. The pain from his injuries caused him to still and clutch his wounds.

"I'm not going to hurt you. Please don't be upset. I'm Yugi…I don't mean you any harm…it's just that I found you and…Well, what's your name?" the teen asked politely, trying not to stare.

The merman opened his mouth to speak but when he did, a loud screech came out instead and in his mouth were two rows of very sharp fangs. Needless to say, Yugi considered making a run for it and taking his chances in the ocean. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—" but before he could finish, the merman lunged forward and grabbed him by the waist to drag him to the ocean's depths.

Despite all of Yugi's flailing and struggling, he couldn't get himself out of the man's grip and he felt the water get colder and colder as they went deeper. Finally, the water stopped rushing past his ears and he dared to open his eyes to see the man staring back at him. His eyes and gold fins were glowing, illuminating the murky depths that surrounded them. He appeared to be rather cross.

"Atem…" he snarled.

Yugi could only let out a couple of bubbles. This was it. He was going to die. This merman was going to eat him. If he ever survives this, he'll never eat fish again!

"My name is Atem, YUGI," he hissed, his words now coherent beneath the ocean. "You do well to remember that!"

Before Yugi could hear why he needed to know the man's name, he watched in disbelief as the man's skin tone changed drastically until he was just as pale as Yugi. What was happening to him!?

"When a merman is rescued by a human, they lose who they are. Soon I won't even remember my own name! Do you see it now? Do you realize what you have done? YOU SHOULD HAVE LET ME DIE!" he roared, scaring the last breath out of Yugi who then began to choke. But just as he thought he was going to drown, a third eye lit up on Atem's forehead and he gripped Yugi harder to hold him still as he bared his fangs and raked them across both sides of Yugi's neck!

Many more tiny bubbles escaped from Yugi, mingling with the blood from his neck as he shrieked in pain. But just as he was ready to accept death, the pain was gone and he found he could breathe. Did this freaky fish guy give him gills!?

"I'm the prince of this region," Atem continued after licking the blood from his fangs. He was still furious but desperation shown in his eyes as he clearly wanted to tell somebody who he was before he forgot himself. "I was fighting off a pair of assassins and though I won, I was injured. I just needed to rest, but you had to stick your air-breathing nose into my business! Now there's only one thing left to do!"

"You looked like you were dying!" Yugi screamed through the water. "What would you rather have me do!?"

"I would have rather died, than be who I am about to become if I don't take what I need from you! Not knowing who you are, who you loved, or where you're from is a fate worse than death! By rescuing me, you have damned me to an unspeakable hell!"

"What do I have to do!?" Yugi asked. "Tell me!"

But before Atem could tell him, his scales turned black, his fins purple, but then they separated into what appeared to be human legs but ones that retained their scaley appearance! Atem snarled in unspeakable pain and dragged Yugi further down with him until both their bodies to the sandy ocean floor. Once things had calmed, Yugi dared to touch Atem's shoulder to see if he was okay. The man might've been very mean to him, but he felt awful just the same. "Are you alright? Atem?"

"Atem…is that my name?" the dazed mermaid asked in a weak voice.

Yugi choked back a sob and hugged the man tightly, guilt overwhelming his heart. "I'm so sorry, I did this to you. You didn't tell me how to change you back!"

The crimson-eyed merman looked at Yugi with a softer expression, "You couldn't have done this to me…" he pointed to his injuries. "You don't look like you could harm a fly."

"You forgot who you are because of me…I don't know what to do…" Yugi tried to explain.

But before Yugi could stammer any more, Atem gently cupped his face as if completely enthralled by the smaller teen. "You don't need to apologize, little one. Somehow I think I'll be alright…if I stay with you."

"If you stay…with me?" Yugi sniffed.

Atem nodded and lightened his death grip hold on Yugi so that it was more of an embrace than the grip of a death throe. To which Yugi feverishly nodded and buried his face in the other's neck. "Yes, stay with me. I'll…I'll let you have my memories. You can have mine…"

"What's your name?" the now pale merman asked as he brushed his fingers through Yugi's flowing locks.

"Yugi…It's Yugi," he sniffed, melting against Atem's curious touches despite himself.

"Yugi, I have a very strong urge to be one with you. Will you let me?" he asked.

"Be one…? I don't understand."

"I don't either, but will you let me try?"

Well, Yugi did basically say he'd give himself up to Atem. Might as well take the plunge…no pun intended.

Before Yugi knew it, their tongues were clashing and hands were struggling to remove what garments he had left. He feared for his mouth after seeing the fangs that Atem clearly had, but once they kissed he noticed that they retracted so only the barest tips actually stuck out and he didn't really feel them at all. This whole kissing underwater thing was very strange but even as he tried not to think too hard about it, he began to wonder about other things…like the mechanics. How was Atem going to…WAIT WAS THAT THERE THE WHOLE TIME!?

As if hidden by a sheath, Atem's swollen member was now out in the open and Yugi could feel it pressing hard against his bare thigh. As things grew heated between them, he started having his doubts. This whole thing was crazy. He didn't even know the guy! Did he really feel so guilty as to let this guy with amnesia "be one" with him on the ocean floor? What choice did he have, really? He didn't know what was going to happen to him after this. For all he knew he could die within the next hour or so. Might as well have a little fun? At least this way, he won't die a virgin.

Meanwhile, the merman seemed to be taking delight in exploring Yugi's human body. His skin felt so smooth and every bit of him seemed to be sensitive as the smaller teen made noises whenever he touched something. His strong hands gently massaged his backside and his mouth teased both his nipples, watching everything begin to glow pink as Yugi's arousal grew. From there, instinct took over as Atem began to stretch Yugi with his fingers and Yugi in kind wrapped is legs around Atem's waist, grinding the two of them together to make this as painless as possible for both of them. The two bump and grind on the sandy floor for what feels like an eternity as Yugi adjusted to more of the prince's fingers. Finally, he found he could wait no longer and pleaded for him to continue with the next step.

Wordlessly, Atem positioned himself, instead choosing to let the rest of his body do the talking for him as he inserted himself inside of his "rescuer". Despite the preparation, the duelist appeared to still be experiencing discomfort, so Atem slowed and waited a little longer while soothing the teen with gentle kisses around his new gills. Once his advances had the desired effect, Yugi thrust against Atem to signal he was ready and the prince began to move.

Yugi soon found that thrusting on his own at a quick pace was a nearly impossible task. He just wasn't used to this sort of movement underwater. But Atem with his warrior-like build, moved with ease and thrust just as quickly as somebody would upon land. Rather than interfere, Yugi relaxed into the sand and did his best to enjoy everything that Atem was doing to him. The water around them felt like it was warming from the sheer heat radiating off their bodies as their unifying became more and more intense. Yugi found himself arching against the prince as wave after wave of pleasure shot up his spine. He even managed to open his eyes for a moment to see that Atem's face was painted in an expression of pure ecstacy. In doing so, Yugi's amethyst eyes made contact with Atem's crimson ones and they stared breathlessly at each other for what felt like the longest 30 seconds of Yugi's life before suddenly they both let out a cry. Their bodies glowed with a strange golden light that seemed to be emanating from their hearts. Neither could tell what was going on as they were blinded by the light and then suddenly by their own orgasms.

Within a minute, it was dark again and the two were resting side by side in the sand, completely spent of their energy. Yugi was the first to open his eyes again and breathed a huge sigh of relief to see that Atem looked like his old self again and his wounds were completely gone. "Atem…Atem!" Yugi called to him, shaking his shoulder to make sure he was still conscious.

"I can hear you…don't ruin this for me," the baritone voice replied.

Yugi wasn't sure whether to laugh or scoff. "So are you…you?"

"It appears to be. But something's different," the merman sat up and pulled Yugi closer to him. "I feel like I've gained something as well."

Yugi blushed and stared down at his hands. "So…what now?"

"I'm afraid you'll have to go back…"

"But Atem! I can't just…not after we…"

"Do not mistake my saying so for not caring, Yugi. But this is the way it has to be. I'm grateful for everything you have done, even with that more than minor setback. Because…I really might have died. This whole experience seems to have healed me completely. I have you to thank for that. I'll always…treasure you for it."

Is this the same guy who was baring his fangs at him when they first met? He really did seem different now. "Will I see you again?"

He opened his mouth to say no, initially, but upon looking at Yugi's beautiful eyes, he choked on the simple word. How could he resist? "Maybe…you can find me, someday." He touched Yugi's new gills with his fingers. "That is, if you keep these."

Yugi nodded, "I'll keep them, then."

After Yugi redressed and they exchanged a few more parting words and kisses, Atem left Yugi up on the shore where they exchanged a tearful farewell. Back on land, Yugi was able to breathe normally again, but his gills remained. Though they were closed, the slits appeared to be very large cuts on his neck, and that simply wouldn't do.

"Guess I'm going accessory shopping on the way home…" Yugi muttered to himself as he picked up his school jacket and bundled up before making a very soggy walk back up to the pier.

FIN


End file.
